Graduate students from the College of William and Mary
were joined by students from several other advanced programs for the College's
eight annual Graduate Research Symposium.

"William & Mary graduate students work creatively
throughout the year to prepare this impressive symposium that shares graduate
research accomplishments with the community," said S. Laurie Sanderson, dean of
graduate studies and research. "Support from the A&S Graduate Studies
Advisory Board has been instrumental in the extraordinary success of the
symposium."

Dozens of graduate students presented their work in
sessions chaired by nearly 30 faculty in Arts & Sciences departments. The
symposium occupied most of the space of the Sadler Center and generated an
88-page program.

Friday's activities were highlighted by a pair of featured
lectures. Scott Nelson, Legum Professor of History, spoke on "What Do Scholars
Do All Day?," while Mark Forsyth, associate professor of biology, took as his
topic "Perception of the Host Environment by Human Bacterial Pathogens." Dennis
Manos, vice provost for research and graduate and professional studies,
delivered welcoming remarks over lunch. A networking reception capped Friday's
session.

Awards for Excellence in Scholarship

The symposium culminated with an awards luncheon and
ceremony on Saturday, presided over by S. Laurie Sanderson, dean of graduate
studies and research; P. Geoffrey Feiss, provost of the College; and Taylor
Reveley, president of the College. A number of awards, including two corporate
prizes, were presented to acknowledge excellence in research by graduate
students both from William & Mary as well as representatives of other
universities.

To be considered for an award, presenters had to submit a
10-12 page paper describing their research. The papers were judged blindly by
an independent panel of William & Mary faculty and Graduate Studies
Advisory Board members.

The various awards for 2009, and their recipients, were:

Market Access International, Inc. Award for Excellence in
Scholarship in the Humanities and Social SciencesPaul
Musselwhite: The College of William and Mary, History. Advisor: James P.
Whittenburg. "What Town's this,
Boy?": Virginia's Town Troubles, English Politics, and Aphra Behn's "The Widdow
Ranter"

Incogen, Inc. Award for Excellence in Scholarship in the
Natural and Computational SciencesErik
Spahr: The College of William and Mary, Physics. Advisor: Gunter Luepke. A New Look at Proton Conduction in Perovskite
Oxides

William & Mary Award for Excellence in the Humanities
and Social SciencesKarl
Mendoza, Biology. Advisor: John Griffin. Penny
For Your Thoughts? How Neuroscience is Influencing Economic Thought: The
Information Cascade Game Example

William & Mary Honorable Mentions

Derek R.
Miller, Anthropology. Advisor: Frederick Smith. Breaking the Mold: Sugar Ceramics and the
Political Economy of 18th-Century St. Eustatius

Frank
Cha, American Studies. Advisor: Susan Donaldson. (Re)Visioning Home: Vietnamese Immigration
and the Politics of Race/Place in the Global South

Visiting Scholars Award for Excellence in the Humanities
and Social Sciences